i’m finally getting around to posting on the last month of 2016! what a way to finish out the year! i loved every minute of december and am just feeling overwhelmed with gratitude right now at life in general. i know i say it all the time, but God is so good! it’s not going to surprise you, but this is going to be a long post with lots of pictures, so be warned. ;) and i didn’t even include christmas – that will be a separate post. just a lot going on in december!

{first up, i always like to start a december post with some good fall leaves, since dallas starts showing its true autumn colors just in time for christmas!} :)

{see what i mean?!}

{next up, a birthday party for my favorite people with thanks-mas birthdays! [yeah, i made up a new word. thanks-mas. you know, like between thanksgiving and christmas.] mom’s is november 30, dad’s is december 1, and priscilla’s is december 5. this was the plate lineup for the party. i kiiiiiiinda love it.}

{on the left, cake-ready! and on the right, the half-and-half german chocolate cake that i make for my parents each year… half traditional german chocolate frosting and half fluffy white bakery frosting [dad’s mom’s recipe]. we usually eat this cake at our celebration and then priscilla gets a separate little cake to take home!}

{the birthday folks! making a wish.}

{birthday presents under the christmas tree… i’d say they were all very good this year!}

{in all honesty, i’m not always a great gift-giver… i either can’t think of the perfect thing or i’m not confident in what i do give… but i was happy with the way this gift for priscilla turned out! :) i love these tennis kids!!}

{captioned: because not everyone gets to go to disney world in matching outfits with their mom! ;) happy happy birthday to the dearest mother a girl could ask for! she is smart, fun, wise, encouraging, and beautiful from the inside out. i’m lucky that the same woman who gave birth to me happens to be my BFF. she’s been there for me in every moment of my life, every time when i needed her, and i’m forever grateful. love you so much mom!}

{captioned: happy happy birthday to the very best dad!! [the photo is actually of him holding ME as a newborn but i love this photo of the two of us.] this man’s work ethic, thoughtfulness, integrity, and gentleness are unlike any other. [also, his sense of humor!!] ;) what a role model he is when it comes to character! you could never doubt his love for his family and he shows that love every day. i’m so fortunate that he’s my dad and that we have the relationship that we do. i love you so much kaptain k!!}

{i went old school this year for mom and dad’s birthdays!!}

{…and a couple more!! loving that leisure suit, dad!}

{they are the best.}

{captioned: i DO love this beautiful girl and i couldn’t think of a better person for my brother bear. happy happy birthday priscilla and thank you for being you!}

{on the left, it’s the best when you can cook something that gets rid of tons of leftovers in the fridge! made some spaghetti, then sautéed some mushrooms, onions, and garlic in olive oil and set aside. in the same sauté pan, whisked some melted butter and flour to make a roux and added chicken broth, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and buttermilk and brought to a simmer, then added some shredded cheddar cheese. finally, mixed it with the pasta and mushroom mixture and some leftover turkey and baked it at 350 degrees for about a half hour. so good! on the right, christmas at nieman’s.}

{breakfast and bible reading in bed: steel-cut oats with silk nog topped with slices of red pear and clementine, pomegranate seeds and pecans. and a hefty dose of leviticus which, if i’m being honest, isn’t my favorite read but i’m reading the bible cover to cover and i’m learning a lot!}

{taught myself how to make origami roses for a culinary school project. i don’t know what happened on those first two!!}

{saying goodbye to your boyfriend for three weeks calls for a cupcake.}

{saw this and it made me happy.}

{pure magic.}

{i love looking through these windows and seeing my sparkling tree.}

{my christmas mantle decorations, so i remember them for future years!}

{this.}

{took a random vacation day and went home to spend a cozy morning with my dad, get my hair done, and make christmas cookies with my mom!}

{the unintentionally-matching cookie makers!}

{cookie mania!}

{this big poofball is the best cuddler!}

{he’s so much more content being held than any of our other dogs have been.}

{christmas lights!}

{isn’t this christmas tree so fun??}

{testing my dad’s riding lawn mower. i’m a dork!} ;)

{one of our old coworkers and his son opened up a new restaurant in trinity groves called beto & son, and since we were all friends with him, we decided to go check it out for a holiday outing. beto unfortunately wasn’t there at the time we visited, but we took a picture with his son and sent it to him!}

{beto & son serves “new generation mexican food” – it’s colorful and fresh and has a creative twist on traditional mexican food. on the left, we shared the queso fundido chorizo skillet with a blend of mexican cheeses, rajas, chorizo and cilantro pesto, served with fresh flour tortillas. on the right, i got the stuffed chile relleno noodle bowl with a chicken and cheese stuffed relleno, calabacitas, cumin lime crema, pickled onions and avocado. it was delicious – those of you in dallas should definitely go check it out!}

{i’m really going to miss my linda girl!}

{my boss kelly was so sweet to make linda and me wreaths as a christmas gift! they turned out so cute – here’s mine hanging on my door! and on the right, our christmas tree at work.}

{my coworker’s hilarious ugly christmas sweater!}

{selfies. the one on the right is with some flowers i bought for culinary school.}

{…and what did i do with those flowers when they started getting tired? i took not one, but TWO flower baths!!}

{yes, flower baths are a guilty pleasure of mine. they were an excellent way to celebrate the end of culinary school too!}

{mike watched periwinkle, priscilla’s brother and sister-in-law’s italian greyhound, while they went on vacation. he is such a cute, funny little guy!}

{kinda blurry but still adorbs.}

{trying new beers at mike’s and loving on peri!}

{i love cafe madrid! i finally had a chance to take my family here. we ate lots of their amazing tapas… this was the spinach with pine nuts.}

{on the left, the boquerones aliñados – imported white anchovy fillets from spain marinated in olive oil and garlic. and on the right, don’t judge a book by its cover! this looks like a black blob, but this portobello mushroom was FANTASTIC, y’all. setas a la plancha o al ajillo – mushrooms on the grill. i can’t even tell you how delicious it was. apparently i took photos of all the healthy tapas, but we also had cheese and spinach croquettes, bread, spanish cured meats and with manchego cheese and olives and marcona almonds, etc.!}

{the cute little restaurant, looking festive for christmas.}

{i don’t know what was better about this meal – the wonderful food or getting to meet the lovely donica, owner of cafe madrid. i love following her food adventures on insta and having a look at all the delicious dishes that cafe madrid is serving. it really is a unique, quant little restaurant with the most amazing tapas and wine [every time i go!]. dallas friends, support your local restaurants. there are truly some GEMS out there. [and as a sidenote, please ignore the fact that my half french braid makes me look like i have a mullet!!!]}

{oh, and there on the left is dessert: spanish creme brûlée and flourless chocolate cake. YUM. and on the right, a rather eerie photo taken in downtown dallas.}

{on the left, this was a bit of an odd scene in nieman marcus… a guy in a santa shirt, santa hat, and sunglasses waiting in line to see santa?? ha. and on the right, made me laugh.}

{trying on clothes is one of our favorite things! on the right, mom’s dress won! she bought it.}

{not the best photo, but he loves to sprawl out on people’s laps!}

{on the left, potato pancakes [my favorite!] made by mom and dad, served with applesauce and a cranberry cabbage slaw. and on the right, did anyone do this as a kid? someone taught me this a long time ago… you stick a peppermint [not a candy cane, but the soft kind] into an orange and suck out the orange juice through the peppermint like a straw. it tastes pretty good, but it’s honestly a lot of work and may be better just to eat the orange and suck on the peppermint, ha.}

{my newest obsession – poke at below 40. these tasted as amazing as they look.}

{shiner loves the car! he’ll jump in even if no one is in there! and i love how he had his paw on my hand like this. it started a whole slew of car selfies…}

{shiner looks so serious!!}

{this was a cool way to light up a bridge at christmas.}

{on the left, wine and ramen at oni in fort worth with kristen and becca. and on the right, a [very busy] product cutting!}

{just some photos of our test kitchen. i’m going to miss this place!}

{christmas presents from a supplier.}

{i gave shiner a donut toy for christmas and he proceeded to eat off the frosting. he looks pretty proud of himself here!}

{i know i’ve said it a few times [!!], but i’m going to miss this place.}

WHEW!! if you’ve made it this far, that was quite an accomplishment [and a time-suck, i’m sure!]. i really hope it was worth it!!! ;) anyway, cheers to 2016 – it was a pretty swell year. photos from christmas to come soon and then onto the new year! i’m slowly but surely catching up. :) thanks for reading!